Display rack



.Aug. 13, 1957 Filed June 17, 1955 I00 98 as lol 04 I02 M. J. KELLINGDISPLAY RACK 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

BY (9m. 71 HM M. J. KELLING 2,802,576

DISPLAY RACK 3 Sheds-Sheet 2 Aug. 13, 1957 Filed June 17, 1955 IN VENTOR. Mm Kel/My BY @W,%"CW F W 3, 1957 M. J. KELLING 2,802,576

DISPLAY RACK Filed June 17, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

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' WM QZTM A United States Patent 2,802,576 I DISPLAY RACK Mark J.Kelling, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The Kelling Nut Co., a corporationof Illinois Application June 17, 1955, Serial No. 516,142

Claims. 01. 211-s9 This invention relates to a display rack for use inthe sale of merchandise, and particularly to a rack adapted to support alarge number of packages or articles.

, One principal object of the invention is to provide a display rackupon which a large number of packages or articles may be suspended in anew and improved manner, so that the articles will move toward the frontof the rack by gravity as they are successively removed from the rack bypurchasers. t

It is another object to provide a new and improved display rack uponwhich packages may be suspended in such a manner that the front of therack will automatically be kept full. at

A further object is to provide a new and improved display rack of theforegoing character which may be adjusted so as to support packages orarticles of various sizes.

ltis another object to provide a new' and improved rack of the foregoingcharacter which also affords support for cans or other similar packagesin such a manner that the packages are tilted rearwardly so as'to beread ily visible from the front.

A further object is to provide a new and improved display rack which issturdy and effective yet is simple in construction, light in weight, andlow in cost.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from thefollowing description, taken with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a right-front perspective view of the display rackconstituting an illustrative embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a left-front perspective view showing the rack loaded withmerchandise, the merchandise being shown in dotted lines;

Fig. 3 is a front elevational view of the rack;

Fig. 4 is a right side elevational view of the rack;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary enlarged sectional view, take generally along aline 5-5 in Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary enlarged perspective view showing a hook elementembodied in the rack.

It will be seen that the drawings illustrate a display rack 10 adaptedto support a large number of articles, 7

such as packages of nuts, for example. Fig; 2 shows the display rackloaded with packages, in the form of cans 11 and two types oftransparent envelopes or sacks 12 and 13.

The illustrated rack 10 preferably comprises left and right hand end orside frames 16 and 17, which may be essentially the same. Accordingly,only the right hand frame 17 need be described in detail. It will beseen that the frame 17 comprises a tubular main member 18 which is bentinto generally inverted U-shaped form. Thus, the member 18 comprisesgenerally vertical front and rear legs 26 and 22 joined by a horizontalcross portion 24 at the top of the side frame 17. The front leg 20 hasan outwardly angling lower portion 26 terminating at its lower end in avertical foot portion 28. Cross bars. 30, 32 and 34 extend horizontallybetween the front and rear legs 20 and 22 at vertically spaced points.It will be seen that a pair of vertical channelshaped bars 36 extendbetween the horizontal top portion 24 and the cross bar 32. Asillustrated in Fig. 6, books 38 may be struck out of the vertical bars36. It will be seen from Fig. 2 that a large number of the sacks 13 orother articles may be hung upon the hooks 38.

The side frames 16 and 17 of the rack 10 are connected together by meansof a rear frame 42, which includes left and right hand vertical bars 43and 44, as well as upper and lower horizontal bars 45 and 46. Thevertical bars 43 and 44 are bolted or otherwise suitably secured to therear legs 22 of the side frames 16 and 17. It will be seen that thehorizontal bars 45 and 46 extend between the upper and lower ends of thevertical bars 43 and 44. Additional vertical bars 48 and 49 are arrangedto extend between the horizontal bars 45 and 46 at points spacedhorizontally between the vertical bars 43 and 44. The rear frame 42 maybe reinforced with a pair of diagonal cross braces 50.

In the illustrated rack 10, upper and lower cross rods 52 and 53 extendbetween the upper and lower portions of the side frames 16 and 17. Morespecifically, the

upper rod 52 is formed with an elongated horizontal portion 54, togetherwith depending end portions 55 and 56 which extend through apertures inthe horizontal frame portions 24 and are secured in place by nuts 57.The lower cross rod 53 is straight and is arranged to extend throughapertures in the lower ends of the front legs 20. Nuts 58 are providedto hold the rod 53 and cross bar 34 in place.

The upper cross rod 52 may be employed to support an elongated,vertical, rectangular border frame 60, on; which an advertising sign maybe mounted. Horizontal and diagonal members 62 and 64 are utilized toconnect the illustrated sign frame 60 to the cross rod 52.

The display rack 10 is arranged in a new and improved manner so astosupport a large number of articles, such as transparent sacks orenvelopes containing nuts or the like. The sacks are suspended on therack in such a manner that they tend to slide toward the front of therack by gravity, as purchasers remove the front packages. In this way,the front of the rack is always kept full. This is an importantconsideration in merchandising, in-

asmuch as buyers select their purchases most freely from' a displaydevice which appears to be full.

To support the sacks or other packages, the rack 10 is provided with oneor more hook frames. Four such frames 66, 67, 68 and 69 are illustratedin Figs. 1, 3 and 4, while an additional frame 69a is shown in Fig. 2.All of the hook frames are essentially the same, except for minordifferences, to be described below, between the uppermost frame 66 andthe other frames. Accordingly, only the frame 67 need be described indetail. It will be seen that the illustrated hook frame 67 comprises apair of vertically spaced horizontal rods 70 which engage the frontfaces of the vertical members 43, 44, 48 and 49, the rods 70 being ofsufiicient length to extend between the members 43 and 44. The bookframe 67 is detachably connected to the vertical members 43, 44, 48 and49 by means of four hanger rods 71, disposed in vertical planes alinedwith the vertical members. As illustrated to advantage in Fig. 5, eachof the vertical members 43, 44, 48 and 49 has a front wall 72 formedwith a large number of vertically spaced apertures 73. Each of thehanger rods 71 has a lower vertical portion 74 which is welded orotherwise secured to the front portions of the horizontal rods 70. Arearwardly and upwardly angling diagonal portion 76 surmounts the lowerportion 74 and extends through one of the apertures 73. The hanger rodis retained in the aperture 73 by means of a vertical upper portion 78which extends upwardly from the diagonal portion 76. Itwill beunderstood that the hanger rods 71 may be disengaged from the apertures73 by swinging the hook frame 67 upwardly so that the portions 76 and 78may be withdrawn from the apertures. Thus, the hook frames maybeadjusted vertically along the display rack so as to engage any desiredset of the apertures 73.

To support the packages, the hook frame 67 includes a-large numberofindividual hooks 80, each of which is in the form of a rod having a rearportion 82 welded or otherwise secured to the horizontal supporting rods70. As illustrated, the rear portions 82 extend vertically between therear portions of the rods 70. Elongated linear portions 84 extendforwardly from the upper ends of the rear portions 82, the latter thusbeing in depending relation'to the. portions 84. It will be seen thatthe elongated portions 84 slant downwardly at a substantial angle towardthe front of the rack 10. Thus, the packages, when suspended on thehooks 80, will tend to slide downwardly along the portions 84. Anupturned portion 86 is formed at the front of each hook to retain thepackages or other articles on the slanting portion 84.

As illustrated, the hook frames 67, 68 and 69 are also provided withelongated, horizontal, channel-shaped strips or bars 88 having opposedflanges 89 to support elongated advertising signs. The sign-supportingstrips 83 are disposed above the hooks 80 and adjacent the front of thedisplay rack 10. Supporting rods 90 extend rearwardly from the strips88, generally in parallel relation to the slanting hook portions 84. Therear ends of the rods 90 are connected to the hook frames 6769 by meansof portions 92 which depend from the rods 90 and are welded or otherwisesecured to the horizontal supporting rods 70. It will be seen that theuppermost hook frame 66 is not provided with a sign-supporting strip,because of the immediate proximity of the sign-supporting frame 60.

At the lower end of the display rack 10, additional means are providedfor supporting packages of the type exemplified by the cans 11. Theadditional supporting means comprise a shelf unit 94 having a shelf orplatform 96 which slants downwardly toward the rear of the rack so thatthe cans 11 or other packages will be tilted rearwardly. In this way,the labels on the cans will be clearly visible from normal eye level.Accordingy, the effectiveness of the display on the lower shelf isgreatly enhanced. In conventional displays, the lowermost shelfgenerally has little sales power, since the articles on the shelf arenot readily visible. By slanting the shelf rearwardly, the sales poweris greatly increased.

To retain the packages onthe slanting shelf96, a backstop 98 isprovided. The sides of the shelf unit 94 are also effectively enclosedby side rails 100, 101., and 102, arranged one within another.

The shelf 96 and the backstop 98 may be defined by a large number ofrods 104 bent into L-shaped form. A

border rod 106 may be bent so as to extend along the front and sides ofthe shelf unit 94. The side rails 100- 102 are welded or otherwisesecured to the border rod 106. It will be seen that upper and lowerhorizontal cross rods 108 and .110 are welded or otherwise secured tothe rods 104 and 106 so as to extendacross the backstop 98. A pluralityof hooks 110' are secured to the upper cross rod 108 and are arranged tosuspend the rear portion of the shelf 94 on the horizontal frame member46. The front portion of the shelf 96 is supported on the horizontalcross rod 53 which extends between the side frames 16 and 17. Asign-supporting strip 112, which may be similar to the strips 88, ismounted on the front of the shelf 96.

It will be apparent that a large number of packages of various kinds maybe displayed effectively on the rack. Transparent sacks or envelopes ofvarious sizes may be suspended on the'elongated hooks 80. For thispurpose, the packages may be provided with apertured top por- 7 tions,as indicated in Fig. 2. The vertical positions of the hook frames 66-69may be adjusted in accordance with the size of the packages beingdisplayed. A large number of packages may be suspended on each hook 80.As the foremost package is removed from each hook, the others will slidedown the slanting portion 84 until they are arrested by the upturnedportion. Thus, the front of the rack will be kept full automatically.

Additional packages may be suspended on the hooks 38 formed on theendframes 16 and 17. Moreover, a large number of cans, boxes or the likemay be stacked on the shelf unit-94. Due to the rearward inclination ofthe shelf, the packages willbe tilted rearwardly so that their labelsmay readily be seen from normal eye level. In this way the sales powerof the shelf is greatly enhanced.

The display rack is effective and sturdy yet is readily portable,-simple in construction and low in cost. The rack may be shipped in aknocked-down condition and easily assembled for use.

Various other modifications, alternative constructions and equivalentsmay be employed without departing from the true spirit and scope ofthe'invention as exemplified in the foregoing description and defined inthe following claims:

I claim:

1. In a display rack, the combination comprising a pair of upright sideframes, a rear frame comprising a pair of Vertical members secured tosaid side frames and upper and lower horizontal members extendingbetween the upper and lower ends of said vertical members, said rearframe including at least one additional vertical member extendingbetween said horizontal members at a point spaced between said firstmentioned vertical members, each of said vertical members having a frontwall with a plurality of vertically spaced apertures extendingtherethrough, a plurality of rack elements located between said endframes and detachably connected to said vertical members, each of saidrack elements including a pair of horizontal rods disposed in front ofsaid vertical members and engaging said front walls thereof, a pluralityof mounting rods disposed in vertical planes alined with said verticalmembers, said mounting rods having lower vertical portions secured tothe front portions of said horizontal rods and extendingtherebetween,said mounting rods having rearwardly and upwardly angling portionssurmounting said lower portions and extending through selected ones ofsaid apertures, said mounting rods having vertical upper portionssurmounting said angling portions and disposed behind said front wallsof said vertical members to retain said rack elements thereon, each ofsaid rack elements having a plurality of horizontally spaced displayhooks of rodlike form, each of said display hooks having a reardepending portion extending between said horizontal rods and securedthereto, an elongated portion extending forwardly from said dependingportion and slanting downwardly toward the front for receiving. aplurality of articles in such manner that the articles will tend toslide toward the front of said rack, and an upwardly projecting portionat the front of said elongated slanting portion for retaining thearticles on saidhooks until manually removed.

2. In a display rack, the combination comprising a pair of upright sideframes, a rear frame extending between said side frames and including aplurality of vertical members, each of said vertical members having afront wall with a plurality of vertically spaced apertures extendingtherethrough, a plurality of rack elements located between said endframes and detachably connected to said vertical members, each of saidrack elements includ ing a pair of horizontal rods disposed in front ofsaid vertical members and engaging said front walls thereof, a pluralityof mounting rods disposed in vertical planes alined with said verticalmembers, said mounting rods having lower vertical portions secured tothe front portions of said horizontal rodsand extending therebetween,

rearwardly and upwardly angling portions surmounting said lower portionsand extending through selected ones of said apertures, and substantiallyvertical upper portions surmounting said angling portions and disposedbehind said front walls of said vertical members to retain said rackelements thereon, each of said rack elements having a plurality ofhorizontally spaced display hooks of rodlike form, each of said displayhooks having a rear portion extending between said horizontal rods andsecured thereto, an elongated portion extending forwardly from said rearportion and slanting downwardly toward the front for receiving aplurality of articles in such manner that the articles will tend toslide toward the front of said rack, and an upwardly projecting portionat the front of said elongated slanting portion for retaining thearticles on said hooks until manually removed.

3. in a display rack, the combination comprising a pair of upright sideframes, at rear frame extending between said side frames and including aplurality of vertical members, each of said vertical members having afront wall with a plurality of rack elements located between said endframes and detachably connected to said vertical members, each of saidrack elements including a pair of horizontal rods disposed in front ofsaid vertical members and engaging said front walls thereof, a pluralityof mounting rods disposed in vertical planes alined with said verticalmembers, said mounting rods having lower vertical portions secured tothe front portions of said horizontal rods and extending therebetween,rearwardly and upwardly angling portions surmounting said lower portionsand extending through selected ones of said apertures, substantiallyvertical upper portions surmounting said angling portions and disposedbehind said front walls of said vertical members to retain said rackelements thereon, each of said rack elements having a plurality ofhorizontally spaced display hooks of rodlike form, each of said displayhooks having a rear portion extending between said horizontal rods andsecured thereto, an elongated portion extending forwardly from said rearportion and slanting downwardly toward the front for receiving aplurality of articles in such manner that the articles will tend toslide toward the front of said rack, an upwardly projecting portion atthe front of said elongated slanting portion for retaining the articleson said hooks until manually removed, and each of said rack elementsincluding a display strip extending horizontally adjacent and above saidfront portions of said hooks and having means for supporting a sign, anda pair of rods extending rearwardly from said strip and having dependingrear portions secured to and extending between said horizontal rods forsupporting said strip.

4. In a display rack, the combination comprising an upright frame havinga plurality of vertical members, each of said members having a frontwall with a plurality of vertically spaced apertures therein, a rackelement detachably connected to said vertical members, said rack elementcomprising a pair of vertically spaced horizontal supporting rodsspanning said vertical members and engaging said front walls, aplurality of mounting rods having lower portions extending between andsecured to said horizontal rods, said mounting rods having intermediateportions surmountiug said lower portions and extending upwardly andrearwardly at an incline through selected ones of said apertures, saidmounting rods having upper portions surmounting said intermediateportions and disposed behind said front walls for retaining saidmounting rods, a plurality of display hooks connected to said horizontalsupporting rods and spaced horizontally therealong, each of said displayhooks being of rodlike form and having a rear portion extending betweenand secured to said horizontal supporting rods, an elongated portionextending forwardly from said rear portion of said hook and slantingdownwardly from rear to front to support suspended articles in suchmanner that the articles will tend to slide forwardly by gravity alongsaid elongated portions, and a front portion extending upwardly from thefront end of said elongated portion for retaining the articles on saidhook.

5. In a display rack, the combination comprising an upright frame havinga plurality of vertical members, each of said members having a frontwall with a plurality of vertically spaced apertures therein, a rackelement detachably connected to said vertical members, said rack elementcomprising a pair of vertically spaced horizontal supporting rodsspanning said vertical members and engaging said front walls, aplurality of mounting rods having lower portions extending between andsecured to said horizontal rods, said mounting rods having intermediateportions surrnounting said lower portions and extending upwardly andrearwardly at an incline through selected ones of said apertures, saidmounting rods having upper portions surmounting said intermediateportions and disposed behind said front walls for retaining saidmounting rods, a plurality of display hooks connected to said horizontalsupporting rods and spaced horizontally therealong, each of said displayhooks being of rodlike form and having a rear portion extending betweenand secured to said horizontal supporting rods, an elongated portionextending forwardly from said rear portion of said hook and slantingdownwardly from rear to front to support suspended articles in suchmanner that the articles will tend to slide forwardly by gravity alongsaid elongated portions, and a front portion extending upwardly from thefront end of said elongated portion for retaining the articles on saidhook, said rack element including a display strip extending horizontallyadjacent said front portions of said hooks in generally overlyingrelation thereto and having means for supporting a sign, and a pair ofrods extending rearwardly from said strip and having depending rearportions secured to and extending between said horizontal rods forsupporting said strip.

References Qited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS107,343 Dimock Sept. 13, 1870 2,016,194 Fredin Oct. 1, 1935 2,166,708Sullivan July 18, 1939 2,246,692 Ohme June 24, 1941 2,419,624 Black Apr.29, 1947 2,626,061 Girouard Jan. 20, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 815,488 FranceApr. 12, 1937

